


The Price of a Single Scratch

by Akiko_Natsuko



Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/F, Falling In Love, Friendship/Love, Minor Injuries, Protectiveness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-22
Updated: 2019-01-22
Packaged: 2019-10-14 16:18:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,596
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17511869
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Akiko_Natsuko/pseuds/Akiko_Natsuko
Summary: Life had settled into a new normal after Yukino and Minerva had announced their relationship, and the entire Guild soon adapted to the fact that where one of them went, the other was sure to be nearby. It also didn’t take long for them to realise just how fiercely protective the pair were, of both another and their relationship.





	The Price of a Single Scratch

    Within Sabertooth it had always been an unspoken rule that you didn’t anger Minerva Orland, even after she had mellowed, her temper and the power she had at her fingertips was enough to make even the unruliest of them wary. It was an awareness that had spread to the other Guilds as they drew closer following the events with Tartaros and later Zeref, allowing them to see Minerva in action, and to realise her strength in a way that the Grand Magic Games hadn’t allowed. However, what they didn’t know, beyond a few more observant members of Sabertooth that there was one sure-fire way of tipping her over the edge into pure fury, regardless of how relaxed, or easy going she became, and that was by laying a finger on Yukino.

    The two of them had grown closer after Tartaros, and that had only continued in the wake of Zeref’s defeat, bonding over shared scars. That, and the fact that it had been Minerva who had stepped forward first to speak up for Sorano when the remnants of the Council had tried to protest against the previous Oracion Sèis member joining a legal guild, an action that caught her just as off guard as it had Yukino, although it had brought them closer.

    It hadn’t stopped there, and under the astonished eyes of their guildmates and friends, that closeness had continued to grow over the months that followed, until eventually, no one was surprised when just over a year after the end of the war the pair had shyly entered the Guild as a couple for the first time. By that point, it hadn’t been a surprise, but it was an outcome that hadn’t been expected, especially with how the old Sabertooth had been, which made the development and news all the more welcome. As it showed just how far not only Minerva and Yukino had come, but how far Sabertooth had come. It also demonstrated just how much of an influence Fairy Tail had, had on the guild as the party that followed the announcement had lasted for a couple of days, and had reduced Sting to tears over the number of repairs that had been needed by the end of it.

*

  Life had settled into a new normal after that, and the entire Guild soon adapted to the fact that where one of them went, the other was sure to be nearby. It also didn’t take long for them to realise just how fiercely protective the pair were, of both another and their relationship. It had only taken a couple of weeks for them to witness what that meant, when a usually peaceful Yukino had torn apart a reporter from Sorcerers Weekly who had tried to rake up the past while interviewing Minerva, unfortunately right in front of her. The poor reporter had barely made it out in one piece, and the Guild had been left with a large hole in its side for a week, leaving Sting with another repair-related headache. Minerva, on the other hand, had walked around with a soft smile on her lips for nearly a month afterwards, and if possible, they had appeared closer than ever.             

    However, that display had raised one question. What would happen if their positions had been reversed? As they all had more than enough to fear what Minerva might do if anyone upset, let alone threatened or outright hurt the Celestial Mage, and a few months later they finally got their answer.       

     Since the shift in their relationship, Yukino and Minerva had taken to doing most of their jobs together, just the two of them, but at least once every month or so they would go a job with the rest of the team. As close as they had become, neither of them were willing to lose that bond with the Guild, after everything that they had gone through to get to that point.  And it had been on one of those jobs, a seemingly simple task, at least for mages of their calibre of disbanding an illegal guild, that Sabertooth finally got to see what a genuinely furious Minerva looked like.     

    The fight had been going well, leaning heavily in their fever, their teamwork improved by hard work and the increased closeness that the entire Guild shared these days. Then it had all gone to hell in a single instant when a stray blast had caught Yukino, and while it had just been a glancing blow, it had sent her tumbling to the ground with a sharp cry, and blood on her face.  

     Sting had immediately moved to go to her, snarling under his breath at having one of his guild members…his friends injured, only to find himself freezing in place as the entire area shifting beneath them, before there was a rumbling sound as several patches of earth began to explode. And even before he had spotted the familiar swirl of their Lady’s magic, he knew who was responsible, and his anger immediately gave way to dread, because he knew better than anyone what she was capable of. However, even he wasn’t prepared for her expression when he finally moved, turning to look at her, in the hopes that he could talk her down. In that second, he realised that wasn’t going to be possible because while he had seen her angry before, seen her desperate and teetering on the very verge of losing her humanity, it was nothing compared to the fury twisting her expression right now.

      The words and reassurances he’d been planning died there and then on the tip of his tongue, and despite himself, he found himself taking a cautious step back and swallowing nervously as he shot warning looks at the others. _Stay back._ He knew that he should stop her and that as Guild master it was his responsibility to rein her in, but right then he wasn’t sure that she was capable of recognising friend from foe, and in that instance, he made a choice. He wouldn’t risk his life, or that of their team to stop her, not when part of him knew and recognised that he would do the same if it were Rogue, and so he remained locked in position as she moved, a maelstrom of magic following her every step.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

It was over in a matter of minutes...

     The other guild hadn’t stood a chance, and Sabertooth watched in awed terror as the other mages were decimated in her fury, sharing stunned looks as Minerva’s magic slowly faded away. It was Sting, feeling their eyes on him, who finally gathered his courage and managed to move forward, although he was cautious as he approached her.

“My Lady...”

“What were you thinking?!” Yukino’s voice cut across him, and he found himself being unceremoniously shoved aside as the Celestial Mage rushed to her girlfriend, mindless of her own injuries. Sting opened his mouth to protest, only to find himself silenced as Yukino glared at him with blazing eyes before her attention shifted back to Minerva who actually recoiled under the force of her glare.

“They hurt you,” Minerva’s voice was soft, utterly at odds with the fury she had shown seconds before, although there was still traces of that rage as she raised a trembling hand, fingers gentle as they ghosted over Yukino’s cheek and temple, wary of causing her further injury. That didn’t seem to help though, as her eyes darkened as she took in the blood marring the pale skin and silver hair, and her voice turned harsh.  “That sin doesn’t deserve any mercy.”

     The team who had been watching and listening intensely, blinked at those words, remembering that she had said something similar once before, in a different lifetime. They had thought that she was angry that time, but that had apparently been nothing compared to now, her magic still crackling around them, and her eyes narrowed as she glanced around at the destruction she had caused without any remorse.

 “But...” Yukino whispered, well aware that she couldn’t really scold the taller woman as she was just as protective, but... as she let her gaze trail over the devastation surrounding them, she knew that she couldn’t just let it slide. “You went completely overboard Minerva, it’s just a scratch.” It wasn’t as though this was the worst injury she’d ever had. She’d certainly had worse in the past, although admittedly that had been before they had become as close as they were now, and she bit her lip. _If this is what she does for a scratch, what would she do if something worse happened?_

“It doesn’t matter how serious it is! They hurt you!” Minerva protested, and there was no hint of repentance in her gaze as she met Yukino’s gaze and held it. They stared at one another for a long moment, before the Celestial Mage sighed, her shoulders slumping before she crossed the last bit of distance between them and throwing her arms around her girlfriend. For a second Minerva stiffened, still on edge, but then her expression softened as it always did around Yukino, and she returned the hug, melting into it even as she reached up to run her fingers through silver hair. “I won’t let anyone hurt you...” _I can’t…_

“I know,” Yukino whispered, leaning into the touch and admitting to herself at least that she loved this overwhelmingly protective side of her girlfriend, and there was a tender smile on her face as she peered up at Minerva. “I love you too.”

 


End file.
